Deacons and the Suffering and Death of Our King

2 Corinthians 4:7-12; Acts 6:1-7
November 7, 2021
Abraham Hong

Sermon Script

Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Next Sunday, Aaron, Brian, Joey, and Tim will become deacons. And together with them, the rest of us - all of us - will enter into new diaconal ministry.

We will step forward with greater care and compassion for one another. We will protect and promote the joy of Jesus’ salvation. And we will help those who are in need. Some of us will soon become deacons. And all of us will soon enter into new diaconal ministry. Praise the Lord.

But this will not be easy. Diaconal ministry is hard. There are many highs. But there are many lows. And one of the hardest parts about ministry in the church is staying humble and encouraged and hopeful when you go through the lows. It is appealing to begin ministry with a kind of arrogant triumphalism in which you think that you have the power to change things and make a difference in the church. It is easy to get discouraged in the church. And it is tempting to end ministry with a kind of sad hopelessness in which you feel that you are just dying inside and that the church is also dying.

Today’s passage is meant to help us stay humble and encouraged and hopeful in the church as the weeks, months, and years go by. 2 Corinthians 4 is about ministry. And it turns out that suffering is meant to point us to the power of God that is working through us. And it turns out that death is meant to manifest for us the life of Jesus that is working in us.

First, dear Highland, let us stay humble and encouraged… knowing that suffering is meant to point us to the power of God that is working through us.

We have this treasure in jars of clay. What does this mean? The treasure refers to Jesus’ priceless gospel and his immeasurable glory. The jars of clay refer to our weak fragility and poor lowliness. The care and compassion and charity of Christ Jesus is valuable. His session is immense and extraordinary. His serving of tables is magnificent and breathtaking. And next Sunday, he will call Aaron, Brian, Joey, and Tim to be ministers of this treasury. Next Sunday, he will usher all of us into a new era of diaconal ministry here at Highland. What is jaw-dropping about all of this is this: we are like jars of clay. We will grow tired and weary. As we strive to meet the physical, emotional, and mental needs of our church members, we may be physically worn down, emotionally drained, and mentally spent. We will be like jars of clay. There will be times when we will not know what to do. As we strive to be caring and compassionate toward one another, we may not be wise enough, we may not be good enough, we may not be loving enough. We will be like jars of clay. Bad things will happen to us in our lives and in the lives of others. And we may grieve and lament and cry with broken-hearted tears and pain. We will be like jars of clay.

Why does God have it be like this? Why do we go through this kind of suffering? The answer is given to us in today’s passage. We have this treasure in jars of clay… to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

Aaron, Brian, Joey, and Tim - fathers and brothers - you will go through suffering as deacons in ministry. And that suffering is meant to humble you and point you to the power of God that is working through you. All of your power will be power received. All of your power that you will have to do Jesus’ ministry will be power given and granted by grace. God will enable and equip and empower you. You have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to you. God will enable and equip and empower you. So stay humble. And be encouraged.

To all of us - brothers and sisters in Christ here at Highland - we will go through suffering as church members who do diaconal ministry. And that suffering is meant to humble us and point us to the power of God that is working through us. All of our power will be power received. All of our power that we will have to do Jesus’ diaconal ministry will be power given and granted by grace. God will enable and equip and empower us. We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. God will enable and equip and empower us. So let us all stay humble. And let us all be encouraged.

Second, dear Highland, let us stay encouraged and hopeful… knowing that death is meant to manifest for us the life of Jesus that is working in us.

We are always carrying in the body the death of Jesus and we are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake. What does this mean? This means that when we go through suffering and when we feel like we are dying inside, we are sharing in the suffering and death of Christ. We are united with him and we have a profound connection with him. And this connection is not poetry or metaphor. This connection is a spiritual reality. We therefore suffer and (subjectively) die because our Lord Jesus Christ suffered and (objectively) died. Our lives are patterned after his life. Our lives are characterized by our union with him. Jesus suffered and die. But he suffered and died unto glory. And thus we too suffer and die. But we suffer and die unto glory as well. Jesus said these profound words in Luke 9:23. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Christian life is a dying of oneself. A dying of onself for the love of God and the sake of his glory. And a dying of oneself for the love of others and the sake of their spiritual well-being and joy of salvation. This suffering and this death is very hard. It involves us being afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down. We are given over to death. We carry the death of Jesus in our lives.

Why does God have it be like this? Why do we go through this kind of death? The answer is given to us in today’s passage. We are always carrying in the body the death of Jesus… so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.

Aaron, Brian, Joey, and Tim - fathers and brothers - you will go through death as deacons in ministry. You will at times feel like you are dying inside. And that death is meant to manifest for you the life of Jesus that is working in you. Remember: Jesus did not stay dead. Jesus rose again from the dead. You are not just united with Christ in his death. You are also united with Christ in his resurrection. Fathers and brothers, you will be afflicted in every way, but not crushed. Rather, when you are afflicted in every way, you will grow and change and become more and more like Jesus. That is the life of Jesus manifested in you. Fathers and brothers, you will be perplexed, but not driven to despair. Rather, when you are perplexed, you will learn obedience and increase in wisdom and in the fear of the Lord. That is the life of Jesus manifested in you. Fathers and brothers, you will be persecuted, but not forsaken. Rather, when you are persecuted, you will double down on care and compassion and charity so that others will know the gospel of Christ and have eternal life in him. That is the life of Jesus manifested in you. Fathers and brothers, you will be struck down, but not destroyed. Rather, when you are struck down, you will yourselves be blessed with the joy of salvation, with the hope of resurrection life, with the faith that soon and very soon you will see Jesus face to face. That is the life of Jesus manifested in you. So stay encouraged. And remain hopeful.

To all of us - brothers and sisters in Christ here at Highland - we will go through death as church members who do diaconal ministry. We will at times feel like we are dying inside. And that death is meant to manifest for us the life of Jesus that is working in us. Remember: There is no resurrection of Jesus without death of Jesus. We are not just united with Christ in his resurrection. We are also united with Christ in his death. Highland, sometimes it can feel like we are dying when we give money and time and energy and many others things for the sake of others. Sometimes it can feel like we are dying when we care for and help one another but we end up being misunderstood or lied to or disrespected or pushed away. Sometimes it can feel like we are dying when we do diaconal ministry but it seems like nothing is happening as a result and we want to be cynical and pessimistic or we want to be angry or we want to quit. Sometimes it can feel like we are dying when we are afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, or struck down. But there is a point to all of this. We are always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. If we take up our cross and follow Christ, then there will be genuine and beautiful community here at Highland. That would be the life of Jesus manifested in all of us. If we deny ourselves and lay down our lives for one another, then we will shine as lights in the world, shining the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ. That would be the life of Jesus manifested in all of us. If we go through death as church members who do diaconal ministry, then 1 Corinthians 6:10 will be true of us. We will be sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; we will be poor, yet making many rich; we will have nothing, yet possess everything. That would be the life of Jesus manifested in all of us. So let us all stay encouraged. And let us all remain hopeful.

It is exciting and historic for us to receive new deacons and enter into greater diaconal ministry. There will be many highs. But there will also be many lows. We will go through sufferings. And we will feel like we are dying. Diaconal ministry will be hard.

But it is a great honor and a mysterious joy. Because when you go through such things, you will begin to know and understand what Jesus went through for your salvation. You will know him more. And knowing Christ Jesus your Lord - that is something of surpassing worth. You will know what it is like to be a suffering servant. You will know what it is like to love your enemies. You will know what it is like to pray and sweat like great drops of blood falling to the ground. You will know what it is like to be rejected, humiliated, and scorned. You will know his tears and sadness and pain. But in the words of Paul in Philippians 3, this is all purposed so that you would gain Christ and be found in him. So that you would know him and the power of his resurrection. So that you would share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible you may attain the resurrection from the dead.

We won. The war is basically over. But in these last days, we the church are called to suffer unto glory. This is not a step that we can skip. Our present identity and experience as believers and our present mission as the church is this: jars of clay. But never forget what Jesus’ jars of clay have inside.

Soli Deo Gloria